Councilmember O'Farrell tells the Planning Report that he believes the high cost of housing discourages companies from doing business in Los Angeles because it makes it hard to find and keep employees. And he says that he believes that within the next year the City of LA will have a permanent source of funding for affordable housing. He says:

"As you may have heard, the LA metro region recently earned another dubious distinction. According to a Harvard study, we are the most unaffordable metro region in the United States. Furthermore, Los Angeles is the only 'high cost' city in the country without a permanent source of revenue to fund the construction of new affordable housing. It is a stark reality that while income levels remained flat from 2000 to 2010, rents increased by over 30 percent. A majority of residents in Los Angeles are renters and over 60 percent of renter households are “cost burdened,” which means they pay more than 30 percent of their income for rent, diminishing their ability to afford the most basic needs, such as food.